Deadbeat Nunawading dad Matthew Verschaeren jailed for bumbling meth dealing racket

A deadbeat Nunawading dad with three children to as many women was the “big drug dealer” until his meth racket went bust.

Matthew Verschaeren, 35, pleaded guilty to importing meth. Facebook.

A deadbeat dad who used and imported ice while living with three children and their drug-addicted mother has been jailed.

Matthew Verschaeren, 35, was sentenced in the County Court on Monday to a minimum 28 months’ jail after pleading guilty to drug charges including importing a marketable quality of meth.

Authorities locked in on Verschaeren after intercepting a package stuffed with almost 100g of meth.

Investigators estimated the meth had a street value of almost $50,000.

The package, disguised as containing a “Microwave Kitchen Oven Appliance”, was addressed to Verschaeren in his real name and to his Nunawading home.

The meth had been mailed to the DHL freight facility near Melbourne Airport via the US.

Verschaeren contacted DHL inquiring where his package was then authorities pounced.

The dad was arrested at his Winifred St home in May 2018 where he was caught with GHB mirror drug Bute.

Verschaeren gave a rambling police interview.

“I was just trying to weasel, like, small samples from people overseas to basically keep myself high and save some money,” Verschaeren said.

Verschaeren claimed he thought he could scam an overseas drug trafficker who had earlier sent him meth.

“I never ended up paying him any money, I just stopped talking to him and then at about Christmas time, so probably about six, seven months after that, was five grams, basically I was broke, thought about if I could scam any more drugs from anywhere sort of thing overseas,” he said.

“I thought, ‘oh, you know, I’ll message him and apologise’ and say that there was a, you know misunderstanding, blah blah blah blah, I can’t remember the exact story cause it was a long time ago.

“I basically ended up convincing him that, you know, if he was — if he sends me another little sample I’ll make sure that, you know, people try it.

“And I did I told him that I can move in quantity and I’m a big dealer and all this sort of stuff basically so he thought that it’d be worthwhile sending me some — a little bit of gear.

“Basically I told him that I’ve kickstarted my enterprise down here basically and, you know, I could have — have whatever money he wanted to him within a week, blah blah blah blah, ‘just send me a sample’ sort of thing.

“Who in their right mind would think someone’s gunna send someone a substantial amount of shit for free.”

Verschaeren said he panicked when he found out the package was with customs so he provided the South Melbourne address of a friend.

“I told her ‘a parcel of shard’ that’s what I said,” Verschaeren said.

“I’m just like ‘we’re gunna be rich babe’.”

The court was told Verschaeren and the mother had been recreational users before they met but spiralled into daily use after moving in together in the same year.

The drug bust came after the father, who has three children with three different women, was jailed for smashing a glass over a woman’s head and stabbing her in the neck with a shard of glass in 2010.

Judge Paul Lacava heard Verschaeren, who grew up as a strict Jehovah’s Witness in Hampton Park and Devon Meadows, began drinking at just 12.

He worked as a plasterer after he was expelled from school at 14 but developed an extreme binge drinking disorder, court documents reveal.

The court was told Verschaeren’s recent offending led to the break-up of his relationship and homelessness.

He also battles ADHD and a personality disorder, the defence said.

“Efforts to rehabilitate himself, while not in custody, have been encumbered by a long-term lack of stable housing and negative, drug using, peer associations,” the prosecution said.

Verschaeren, who pleaded guilty to importing a marketable quantity of a border controlled drug and drug possession, was jailed for a maximum three years and six months.

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